# Paolo Benetazzo

Paolo Benetazzo (born 16 July 1976) is an Italian film director, actor, screenwriter, producer, editor and visual artist. He made his feature film directorial debut with Study (2012), which has been screened and awarded at international film festivals worldwide. Distinguished by a profound cinematic individualism, the film was entirely shot by Benetazzo without any film crew. He is the founder of independent film production company ARTtouchesART.

## Early life and education

Benetazzo was born in Vicenza, Veneto, Italy. At the age of 19 he began acting and filming while attending the University of Padua. Experiencing a temporary conflict with the academic environment, he interrupted his studies for some years, picking up different jobs, until he eventually graduated in 2003 with a master's degree in psychology.

## Career

In 2007 after travelling around Europe and living in Dublin for a few years, Benetazzo started working on his feature film directorial debut. Discouraged by the Italian film industry, he moved to London and founded ARTtouchesART Films in 2012.
Between 2007 and 2012 he wrote, produced, photographed and directed the independent film Study. He also starred in the lead role and composed the soundtrack. Since its premiere in London in 2012, the film has quickly developed a cult following among fans and audience.
At the end of 2012 Benetazzo worked with artist Danny Sherwood in the production of "Bitter Ditty". In 2013 he directed and edited the music video "Salamander" for rock band Mount Fabric and "Like to Party" for electronic producer Cal Strange. During the same year he also directed the short film Sense, which was selected in a number of film festivals including the Seattle Erotic Art Festival. In 2015 Benetazzo directed the music video "Love me Hurt me" for French artist Oriana Curls.

## Filmography
### Feature films

| Year | Title | Role | Film Festivals and awards |
| 2012 | Study | Actor (The student) Director Writer Producer | Portobello Film Festival 2012: Nomination for Audience Award California Film Awards 2012: Winner Gold Award Accolade Competition 2013: Winner Award of Merit for Feature Film Accolade Competition 2013: Winner Award of Merit for Leading Actor Los Angeles Movie Awards 2013: Winner Honorable Mention SoCal Film Festival 2013: Official Selection Columbia Gorge International Film Festival 2014: Official Selection Cyprus International Film Festival 2014: Official Selection |

### Short films

| Year | Title | Role | Film Festivals and awards |
| 2013 | Sense | Director Writer Producer Editor | Bad Film Fest 2014: Award Winner Seattle Erotic Art Festival 2014: Official Selection Chéries-Chéris Film Festival 2014: Official Selection Nachtschatten Film Festival 2015: Official Selection Rural FilmFest 2015: Official Selection |

### Music videos

| Year | Title | Artist | Role | Film Festivals |
| 2012 | "Bitter Ditty" | Danny Sherwood | Director Writer Editor | Art All Night Film Festival 2014: Official Selection Rendezvous Film Festival 2015: Official Selection |
| 2013 | "Like to Party" | Cal Strange | Director Writer Editor | BBC Music Video Festival 2013: Official Selection SouthEastern Film Festival 2015: Official Selection Art All Night Film Festival 2015: Official Selection |
| 2013 | "Salamander" | Mount Fabric | Director Writer Editor | Reel 13: Official Selection Three Cities Film Festival: Official Selection 2015 SouthEastern Film Festival 2015: Official Selection |

## Discography
### Albums

| Year | Title | Role |
| 2012 | Study Original Soundtrack | Producer Music composer |